Lainn's Destiny

It’s 1746 and nine years old, Lainn rushes home to warn his mother of trouble coming their way. The redcoats want Alison, who happens to be a Jacobite, out of England and fast. They barely escape before their house is burned to the ground.

In the meantime, Alison’s husband and Lainn’s stepfather is in Scotland fighting the Highlanders. Disgusted by his own people’s behavior, he helps a dying Highlander and is punished for his “crime.” Sentenced to lashings, he finally returns to England to find that his beloved wife and the boy he cares for like a son are presumed dead.

Alison, desperate to keep her son safe, gains passage on the next ship bound for the Colonies. After an exhausting trip, that includes being attacked by pirates, they arrive in Dutter’s Landing, on the Chesapeake. That’s where Alison and Lainn start a new life and a new future.

Lainn becomes an apprentice to Mr. Dutter, the first man to settle in Dutter’s Landing and Alison opens up a tavern. They quickly become a part of the land and the colonies, and as Lainn grows older, he finds himself fighting for the colonies and then writing about the ill treatment of slaves and eventually becomes a doctor trying to fulfill the destiny he was bound for.

According to the title, this is the sequel to Alison’s Legacy. To tell you the truth, I had long forgotten this book was a sequel until I sat down to write this review. This book stood by itself. In fact, there was so much detail in this story that I couldn’t write it all down on one page, including a mysticism thread about past lives that was fascinating but difficult to describe.

What I loved about this book was the detail it gives of history. I felt what it was like to be back in England in the 1700’s and in the Colonies and even in Scotland. I felt the humiliation the slaves had to go though and cheered when Lainn did something to try to help them. I fell in love with Lainn, as I’m sure anyone who reads this book will. He wasn’t perfect but he always learned from his mistakes. I think I’m going to have to go back and find Alison’s story so that I can learn more about this wonderful family. I recommend this book for anyone who loves history with a twist of the unknown.

Reviewed by: Melanie